Rockwell Technologies, Inc.

Scully Signal Company

Sensopart Industriesensorik Gmbh

Rockwell Automation Technologies Incorporated

Jagjit S Thiara

Gary R Cadman

Brian Haley Schriver

Manfred Wiezel

A switching sensor may automatically configure itself to a sinking or a sourcing mode by monitoring the voltage of its switched output to determine a loading configuration associated with each of these operating modes. The auto detection may occur not only at start up but also during operation of the sensor by monitoring the output voltage or current in coordination with knowledge about the intended state of the output by the sensor. A manual selection of the operating mode and override of the autodetect feature may be provided for cases when multiple sensors are connected in parallel.

Sensor with concurrent autosensing of output mode and manual selection

A fluid overfill and identification system uses a pulsed signal to both detect an overfill condition and identify a fluid product contained in a compartment. The pulsed signal is converted into an optical pulsed signal which is used with a retroreflective prism to detect when a fluid in the compartment has reached a desired capacity. Encoded in the pulse width of the same pulsed signal is the specific fluid product located in the compartment. Furthermore, different pulse frequencies are provided depending on whether the tanker truck is at a service station or at a loading terminal, thus allowing the system to distinguish between the two. At a marketing terminal, a new code is loaded into the system as a new fluid product is loaded into a compartment. A residue sensor may detect residual fluid in the compartment, and prevent the loading of a new fluid product and a new ID code.

Fluid overfill protection and product identification system

Growing community of inventors

Southborough, MA, United States of America

Jagjit S Thiara